Sonia Gandhi asks PM Modi to follow ‘Raj Dharma’ and reduce fuel prices
New Delhi, 21/2: Congress President Sonia Gandhi has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which she has asked him to follow ‘Raj Dharma’ and reduce the fuel prices.
In her letter, Gandhi says, “On one hand, India is witnessing systematic erosion of jobs, wages and household income. The middle class and those at the margins of our society are struggling. These challenges have been compounded by run away inflation and an unprecedented rise in price of almost all household items and essential commodities. Sadly, in these distressing times, the Government has chosen to profiteer off people’s misery & suffering.”
She further adds, “Petrol has breached the 100/litre mark in many parts of the country.To put it in context, the crude oil price is nearly half of what it was during the UPA Government’s tenure. Therefore, your Government’s act of raising prices (continuously for 12 days till February 20th) is little less than a brazen act of profiteering.”
“This unaccounted-for windfall is yet to be passed to the people for whose benefit it was ostensibly collected,” she further added.
“The whole principle of deregulation & dynamic pricing is predicated on the principle that reductions in crude oil prices will proportionately benefit the end consumers. The fact that your Government fails to do so implies a deliberate and conscious decision to deny the common man his legitimate due,” she said.
She adds, “Instead, ironically, your Government has been unreasonably over-zealous in levying excessive excise duty on Petrol and Diesel, i.e., 33 on every litre of Petrol and 32 on every litre of Diesel, which is higher than the base price of these fuels.”
“This is nothing short of extortion to cover up economic mismanagement. As the principal party in opposition, I urge upon you to follow ‘Raj Dharma’ and reduce fuel prices by partially rolling back excise duty,” says Sonia Gandhi.
Sonia Gandhi also speaks about the rise in prices of LPG gas cylinders in her letter.
“The astronomical rise in domestic non-subsidised LPG Gas cylinder to 769 in Delhi (and over 800 in many states like Uttar Pradesh) is even more cruel and has impacted every household. Can there be any justification for the Government increasing the price of a cylinder by 175 in two and a half months since December 2020?”, she asks.
She adds, “The truth is that as GDP nose dives, the prices of Gas, Diesel & Petrol continue to rise unchecked.”
Mocking the centre she writes, “What is equally distressing is that despite being in power for almost 7-years now, your government continues to blame previous regimes for its own economic mismanagement. To set the record straight, domestic crude oil production has fallen to an 18-year low in the year 2020.”
